My friend Shirli Green died on June 16, 2013 at the age of 39. Shir, her parents, her husband, her beautiful daughter Mia, and her friends did the Alaska Run for Women every year for at least 3 years together. Last year was too hard, because Shir was on hospice, and we couldn’t bear to do it without her. This year, we will do this in her memory. Signing on and registering was harder than I ever thought it would be, and losing a friend like Shir has been heartbreaking. I have so many pictures of her, even when she was too weak to walk and we took turns pushing her in a wheelchair (always the 5 mile), where she insisted on standing and walking through the finish line. Shir was a “walk through the finish line” kind of woman. Her absence in the life of so many people is a gaping hole that will never be filled. On the day of the Women’s Run, Shir will be with us in spirit on “Team Shir”.